Cu Lao Gieng farmers achieve high profits from mango exports

An Giang Province currently has 12,320 hectares of mango cultivation, with Cho Moi District accounting for 6,400 hectares. Among these, more than 4,000 hectares are concentrated in the communes of Tan My, My Hiep, and Binh Phuoc Xuan in Cu Lao Gieng.

The first VietGAP mango-growing area

Le Quang Dien, former Chairman of the Farmers’ Union of Binh Phuoc Xuan Commune, shared: “In 2000, Cu Lao Gieng farmers started cultivating the three-colour mango, which proved to be highly profitable—yielding 5 to 10 times more income than rice farming.” According to Dien, there was a time when three-colour mangoes were priced at over 68,000 VND/kg, leading to strong demand and the establishment of 23 mango collection points in Binh Phuoc Xuan. In 2015, Binh Phuoc Xuan became the first commune in the province to receive VietGAP certification for its 7.5-hectare mango cultivation area.

Additionally, local departments and agencies actively supported Cu Lao Gieng farmers in transitioning to VietGAP standards to meet the stringent requirements of export markets. With nearly 1,100 hectares under mango cultivation, which brings high income, residents in Binh Phuoc Xuan have experienced significant improvements. On April 1, 2025, the commune was officially recognised as a new-style rural commune in terms of production organisation for the year 2024.

Recognising the importance of collective production and cooperative linkages to expand to global markets, farmers in Binh Phuoc Xuan formed production groups at the hamlet level (known as the “10k club”), which later evolved into the Cu Lao Gieng GAP Clubhouse and is now the Cu Lao Gieng GAP Cooperative.

Securing stable market access

In the first half of 2025, Cu Lao Gieng growers harvested 19,494 tonnes of mangoes, fetching an average price of 9,288 VND/kg—784 VND/kg higher than in the same period of 2024. This price ensured good profits for farmers participating in regional linkage programmes. Phan Van Khanh, an exemplary farmer from Binh Phu Hamlet, Binh Phuoc Xuan Commune, stated that being part of the Cu Lao Gieng GAP Cooperative helped ensure stable prices and prevent price suppression. Khanh cultivates 1,600 mango trees and signs purchase contracts in advance for each season at 15,000 VND/kg, ensuring profitability.

Farmer Le Van Be Bon, from Binh Trung Hamlet, has been cultivating 3,000 square metres of green-skinned mangoes under VietGAP standards for six years. At the beginning of each season, he signs contracts with the cooperative, allowing him to focus solely on technical care to produce high-quality, export-grade mangoes.

Nguyen Thi Ngoc Tham, an agricultural technician in Binh Phuoc Xuan Commune and a member of the cooperative, grows more than one hectare of VietGAP mangoes. She explained that Cu Lao Gieng is enriched by the alluvial soil of the Tien River and the longstanding expertise of local farmers, which results in delicious mangoes that are popular in the market. Farmers mainly grow the three-colour mango, which produces two types of fruit—green-skinned and seedless mangoes—depending on market demands.

According to Tham, mangoes are purchased at 15,000 VND/kg, several thousand VND/kg higher than market rates. However, producing such high-quality fruit requires strict adherence to technical standards, which is why many farmers remain hesitant to join production linkage programmes, choosing instead to risk fluctuating market prices.

Nguyen Minh Hien, Chairman of the Board and Director of the Cu Lao Gieng GAP Cooperative, said: “The cooperative was founded in December 2020. In 2022, it began partnering with farmers, signing contracts for mango supply and consumption with supplying and purchasing companies. To date, we have delivered over 2,000 tonnes of green-skinned and seedless mangoes to export markets including the Republic of Korea, China, Australia, New Zealand, and the US.” Additionally, the cooperative supplies more than 4,000 tonnes of mangoes to the domestic market.

Since its inception with just seven members, the cooperative has grown to 51 official members and 243 affiliated members, covering nearly 300 hectares. Of this, 230 hectares have been certified under VietGAP, and 50 hectares under GlobalGAP, as the cooperative aims to expand its export market to Europe.

Moreover, the cooperative’s green-skinned and seedless mangoes have received the 3-star OCOP (One Commune One Product) certification—good news for local farmers. However, the current export volume still represents only a small fraction of the region’s cultivation area. In fact, while many Cu Lao Gieng farmers have prospered from mango cultivation, they have also faced hardships when market prices plummet.

Over the past few years, the An Giang Provincial People’s Committee has launched numerous action programmes, projects, and plans to develop agriculture, rural areas, and adapt to climate change and market trends, aiming to increase farmers' income. These include the “Restructuring the agricultural sector in the 2021–2025 period with a vision to 2030” and the “Crop conversion plan from inefficient rice land to vegetables, flowers, and fruit trees 2021–2025”, as well as the implementation of digital transformation in agricultural production.

For the fruit tree sector, mangoes have been identified as a core, high-value crop. The province has directed strong conversion efforts to mango cultivation. Besides technical support to improve productivity and quality, building value chains for mango production and consumption remains one of the province’s top priorities for enhancing product value.

Exporting mangoes to demanding markets such as the US, Australia, and the Republic of Korea reflects the concerted efforts of local authorities, businesses, cooperatives, and especially the farmers of Cho Moi District. This has been the result of over a decade of challenging negotiations, with mangoes having to meet strict import standards, including limits on pesticide residues, pest control, traceability, and irradiation.

Therefore, the Provincial People’s Committee urges relevant departments and agencies to actively encourage farmers to participate in collective economic models and apply new scientific and technological advances in production. It also calls for greater efforts to promote mangoes in the market, attract business partnerships for organic and biological mango farming linked with consumption, and support the inclusion of mango products on e-commerce platforms.